Taking Risks
by KimKo03
Summary: Tory's life is anything but boring.Ben's acting weird, there's this new, cute, guy on the island, and of course, there's the tiny issue of someone trying to kill her. But what would Tory's life be like if she didn't take risks? Rated T just incase.
1. The Beginning

I do not own Virals, even though I wish I did.

**Tory's POV**

So it was just another normal day, well, as normal as it can be when you and your 3 best friends have been infected with a virus that gives you superhuman abilities, and I was at school. I go to Boston Prep, a school I absolutely hate only because of the people that go there. It was Friday, my favorite day because I could get away from all of these people and just relax at the bunker with my wolf-pup Cooper. And it also happened to be the last day before Spring break. Seems like a great time right? Wrong. I did hang out at the bunker, but then things got weird. And by weird, I mean incredibly dangerous and life threatening. But I am getting a little ahead of myself. Let's start with what happened at school.

I was on my way out when the one and only Jason found me. Don't get me wrong, Jason's a good guy, but boy was he clingy. I looked around for a way out, but there was none to be seen. So I turned to face him, put on what I hoped looked like a friendly smile and said "Hi Jason. What can I do for you today?" Jason's smile grew. "Well, there's this buddy of mine and he's throwing this party at his house. I was wondering if you wanted to come." I needed an excuse fast. "Sorry, but I already have plans. I have to do that research project that's due after break. I'm doing research on the monkeys at LIRI." "That place is pretty dangerous; do you want me to come with you?" _Crap, chuck it up to him to be the protective type. Think fast Tory…_ "No its okay, Ben's actually coming with me. He's my partner on this project." Jason scowled at Ben's name, but didn't say anything about him, which I was thankful for. I have a hard enough time keeping the peace between them. "Well, I hope you finish your project so we can hang sometime this break", He replied finally. "Hopefully I'll be seeing you around." And with that, he walked off.

I didn't lie to Jason, I really had a project to do. But I was planning on doing it the weekend before we got back, not right away. But whatever, I might as well finish it now and have the entire break to have fun. But there was only one person who could give me a ride to LIRI, the person I had happened to have told Jason was my partner, when he actually wasn't. Ben Blue.

So this was my first ever Fanfic. Hope you liked it. The second chapter will be up shortly. And I promise you, there will be action and romance. Please rate and review, but please be kind. See ya'll later!

~KimKo03~


	2. A Walk in the Woods

**Tory's POV**

"So Ben… are you doing anything tonight?" I asked nonchalantly. "No" he replied. Then he squinted at me. "Why?" _Why does everyone always assume that I'm going to cause trouble_, I thought to myself. " I have to do a project and I decided to do it on LIRI. And I kinda need a ride there. You don't have to break in, steal, or even leave the boat. I just need a ride." He looked at me for a minute longer, clearly debating the consequences of being my ride. But finally he just nodded. "Meet me by Sewee at 7." Then he walked off. Weird. Even for Ben Blue, the man of few words, he was acting a little strange.

It was 6:30 and I was just getting ready to head down to the dock when SHE came in. Kit had apparently 'forgotten' to tell me that they had scheduled a dinner for all of us. Whitney wasn't a bad person, but she wasn't my mom. She had gotten me involved with the Cotillion, although forced would be the more appropriate word. Dresses and suits and galas just weren't my thing. "Tory Hun, where are you going?" Whitney asked. Ugh… I just can't catch a break…" I have a research project for school and I Ben's giving me a ride." She smiled slightly "Just you and Mr. Blue?". _Why does everyone think that we have a thing!_ I thought to myself while suppressing a scream. I plastered on a sickly sweet smile and answered " Yes, we are working on a project in Biology together. And why not finish it right away." She continued to smile at me even after I turned my back on her. I could feel her eyes on me. Just perfect. At least Kit hadn't been there to give me 'the talk'. He gave it a lot when he found out all my friends where guys. Not that I needed it. They were all just friends. _Stop lying to yourself Tory. Ben is more than just a friend._ Gah! Where were these thoughts coming from? Yes, I admit it, Ben is attractive. But I certainly DO NOT have a crush on him. It would just complicated things. _You just keep telling yourself that and maybe one day you'll actually start to believe it._ Sometimes I wish I was a boy, then things would be so much easier…

I found Ben waiting by the boat. He had this annoyed look on his face. Crap, It was 7:30. I hadn't realized that I had talked to Whitney for so long. "Hey Ben. Sorry I'm late. Kit invited Whitney over and didn't tell me." He just shrugged it off and got in the boat. I climbed in after him and we sailed off. It only took about 20 minutes to get to LIRI but it was awkward. I had never really spent time alone with Ben before. I got off the boat and was surprised to hear a thud behind me. When I turned around, Ben was on the shore behind me. "You can stay on the boat you know. You don't have to come with me." I told him. He just shrugged and continued to walk. _Well okay_ I thought.

While we walked, I began to think about Ben and the conversation that I had with Whitney. I kept telling myself that what she said didn't bother me, but in truth it did. And Whitney wasn't the only person to say something about Ben and I. Hi and Shelton mentioned it when they thought I wasn't listening. But I had always assumed that they just did it to annoy Ben. I decided to stop thinking about Ben, who I noticed had started to walk in front of me, and enjoy the scenery. And it was probably a good thing too. Or else I wouldn't have heard the clicking sound of a gun being cocked, turned around and saw a man in the distance.

**SNUP.**

**Ben's POV**

I knew I had been acting weird. From the looks Tory had given me, she also realized it. But she didn't say anything, which I was grateful for. Tory was just that kind of person. She was assertive when she needed to be, but didn't pry into your life. That was one thing I admired about her, along with her strength, her courage, her long red hair and beautiful… WAIT! What am I thinking! Tory was definitely just a friend!

I thought about this while we walked until, all of a sudden, I was shoved to the ground. I was flipped on to my back. When I opened my eyes I saw Tory's face. She was on top of me, pinning me to the ground. And she looked beautiful. Red hair flowing all around her, wide gorgeous eyes but wait. They were gold. _Why had she flared?_ I thought to myself_. There was no dang_- at that moment a bullet sank into the tree above up. _Crap. Not again_.

More to come! Let me just say again that this is my first fanfic, so any pointers would be greatly appreciated! I know i haven't had any Hi or Shelton but they will be here! Please Rate and Review! See Ya'll!

~KimKo03~


	3. Flaring Problems

**Ben's POV**

I felt Tory tense up as the bullet sank into the tree. She then leaned over me whispering "Ben! You need to flare!" I tried, I really did. But flaring didn't come naturally to me. Every time, I needed someone to help, most of the time by causing me pain. Tory had slapped me, and Hi had kicked me. I closed my eyes and focused. But it did me no good. I looked back up at her and shook my head. I just couldn't do it. I saw a look of fear pass through her eyes. Then she did the unexpected.

**Tory's POV**

Ben looked up at me shaking his head. He couldn't flare. _Shit,_ I thought. There has to be a way to make him flare without hurting him. He might make noise if I do. An idea came to me. _Ah Hell, this had better work_. And with that I leaned back down and I kissed him. It was nothing special, just a quick little kiss. I hoped that it would be enough to help him flare.

**SNUP**

**Ben's POV**

She kissed me. Victoria Brennan had kissed me. I flared almost instantly. When I looked back up at her, I saw her face go slightly red, but come back to normal immediately. There was still a guy, if not more, with a gun after us. I used my strength to flip Tory and myself over a couple of times to get us away from the spot the gunman had shot at. We ended with me being on top of her. She actually pulled me closer and told me to be quiet, not that I needed to be told of course. We waited for a few minutes, just lying there silently. With my enhanced hearing, I was aware of at least 3 people walking around looking for us. I also noticed, even though I tried not to, how fast Tory's heart was beating. She was really freaked out. At last one of the men said "They must have gotten away. Head back to the shore to see if they back tracked. GO!" and with that they ran off. We stayed silent for another minute.

**Tory's POV**

The men had finally left. I turned my head to face Ben and told him he could get off me now. He blushed slightly and got up. His gold eyes shone in the moonlight. We made our way back to _Sewee_ as quietly as possible. But the men were nowhere to be seen. We got in the boat and sailed off. The entire way back all I could think about was _Oh My God… I kissed Ben_. My idea had worked, Ben had flared. Our flares where gone now, which upset me a little because I kinda wanted to know what he was thinking. But then again, what if knowing hurt? I was also worried by who had shot at us. I hadn't done anything bad in at least a month. So why where these men after us?

When we reached the dock, I looked at Ben. He had been quiet the whole trip back. "Ben, I just want you to know that I only, erm, kissed you to make you flare. I'm sorry if I upset you, or made you, uh, uncomfortable in anyway. I hope this doesn't affect us being friends." And with that, I turned away and started toward my house.

**Ben's POV**

Tory apologized for kissing me. It hurt a little to hear her say 'friends'. I must admit it to myself now. I wanted to be so much more than just friends with Tory. But she didn't feel the same way. I walked back to my house, and went straight to my room. Right when I sat down a picture popped onto my laptop screen, Shelton. I sighed but clicked so we could video chat. "Hey man, what's up?" Shelton had some sort of wires around him and he looked like he was in the midst of fixing, or destroying, something. "Nothing much Blue. Where have you been all night? I tried to reach you a couple of times, but you never answered." I thought of the best way to tell him of what had happened, one where he wouldn't freak out. "Well, Tory asked me for a ride to do a project and I said yes. We were in the woods when these guys shot at us. I couldn't flare so Tory kissed me. We finally got out of there and here I am." At that moment Hi appeared on Shelton's screen. "Hold on a second! Tory KISSED you?" _Damn, Hi was the last person I wanted to know about the kiss_. "Uh, yeah. It was only for a second and only to help me flare. That was it. She told me as much." I noticed that Hi had apparently not heard anything about the gunmen. He just smiled. That was actually worse than him talking. Shelton on the other hand didn't hear past the gunmen, which I was grateful for. "Guys SHOT at you? Again? What did Tory do this time?" I had actually asked myself that same question.

* * *

><p>Well, that's all for this chapter! Hope this was good! Please Rate and Review! See Ya!<p>

~KimKo03~


	4. A New Interest

**Tory's POV**

Saturday was here. I decided to just go to the bunker. I needed to clear my head. What with people shooting at us, me kissing Ben…. Well, let's just say that sleep hadn't agreed with me last night. Kit was of course pissed that I had failed to let him know when I would be home. I hadn't told him about the men with guns though. I needed to find out what they were after. I thought about where Ben and I where last night. We were only about 300 feet from LIRI, so maybe it had been guards? I quickly dismissed that thought. Guards don't just shoot at people. Maybe there was another unauthorized experiment happening at the lab. That would call for some increase in security, and if it was illegal, the guards would certainly shoot. But I had to know for sure. I realize this sounds like an incredibly dangerous, not to mention stupid plan, but with everything that has happened to Ben, Shelton, Hi and I, most police officers wanted proof. And there was only one way that I knew how to get that.

I called Hi to let the others know to meet me at the Bunker. He sounded weirdly happy to hear that I wanted to see them. Huh, what could he possibly be happy about? Everyone knows my meetings are never good.

It had been 15 minutes and Cooper, my Wolf-dog pup, had begun to grow restless. He wanted to play. All of a sudden, he bolted out of the bunker. I groaned, this was not how I wanted my day to start. But I got up to go after him. He started to run, and soon I was running too. I heard a tree crack to my right, but I didn't stop running when I turned my head. And I ended up plowing straight in to someone. We rolled for a bit, entangled in each other. We ended with my back to the forest floor, and him looking down at me. I had no clue who this person was.

_Why do I always end up in this position_? I asked myself. But then I noticed this guy's eyes, they were as blue as the ocean, and could suck you right in. He smiled at me then started to get off. He put out a hand, and I graciously took it. He was about 16 years old, 5' 10, give or take, with shaggy brown hair that fell just the right way around his face. His skin was slightly tan, a natural color, something that happened when someone spent a lot of time outside. He was muscular, but not bulky. It was more of a lean muscular, but it showed through his sleeves. I regained my composure and started to apologize. "I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going. I heard a sound over there" I turned and pointed in the direction the crack had come from "and my w- dog, my dog had gotten away from me so I thought it might be him." He just laughed a little and continued to smile. "Hey, it's no problem at all. Do you want help looking for him?" He offered. I just nodded. "Okay, so where does your dog like to go?" He asked me. "We go to the beach a lot, so he might be there." "Well then, lets go." He started to walk forward then stopped and turned toward me. "I don't actually know where the beach is. I'm new here and I was just exploring a bit. My name's Blake by the way." I laughed but walked up to him and told him to follow me. "The beach is this way, and my name's Tory." We walked for a little while, and I asked him about himself. Where he was originally from, why he moved here, what he thought of the island so far. "I lived in Chicago for a bit, then Houston, LA, and a couple of pretty small towns. I moved here because my dad had an accident" and he mention of that, he began to frown slightly, but quickly hid it. "My mom works at this lab place called LIRI, so if was forced to move up here. The island is pretty cool actually, and it's awesome that they just let us roam around freely." His face had lit up again. "Now" he said. "its your turn."

We had made it to the beach, and found an old log to sit on. I told him all about my mom, my dad's job, and even Whitney. I was unsure of why I was telling him all this, and feared that he may get bored with me talking. But he just continued to look at me, nodding at the appropriate spots. We had called Coopers name for what seemed like hours, but it had actually only been a couple of minutes. Coop finally decided to listen and he came bounding over to us. He stopped 10 feet from us and just looked at Blake. Blake, who realized that Coop wasn't just a dog, looked straight back at him. After what seemed like forever, Coop wagged his tail and came to us. He sat right by Blake. I stared in awe. Cooper was never this friendly; especially not to a person he had just met. Blake noticed my face, and laughed. "I have a way with animals, they just seem to like me" he said. I smiled at that. We had more in common that I could have ever thought possible. We sat there and talked until Hi, Shelton, and Ben showed up.

**Ben's POV**

Tory wasn't at the bunker when we got there. We decided to head toward the beach, knowing that it was one of the only other places we hung out a lot. We finally reached the beach, and that's when I saw him. He was sitting next to Tory on a log, and when I say next to, I mean that they were practically touching. And she was laughing. A lot. _Something must be wrong _I thought to myself. Hi had noticed my face and snickered. "Jealous Blue?" he said, making me turn to face him. "No, but it seems weird for Tory to just talk to a guy like that and not be hatching a plan." Shelton leaned over and whispered to Hi. They thought I couldn't hear, but they were wrong. "Oh yeah, he's definitely jealous." This just caused Hi to snicker even more. I growled slightly, but headed toward Tory. When we got close enough, the guy was the first to notice us. He elbowed Tory slightly, and pointed to us. She looked up and smiled at us, her face glowing.

**How will Ben react to meeting Blake? Post your guesses! I Hope this has been good so far! And don't worry, the plot thickens in the upcoming chapters! I also realize that I have made a couple of 'factual' mistakes, like the name of the school, so I will make them correct in the next chapters. Hope you enjoyed so far!**

_**~KimKo03~**_


	5. Just a little side note

**Hey ya'll. So this is just a little side note that I probably should have mentioned in the first chapter. My original thought for this fanfic was to have a couple of one/two shots. But I decided last minute to make it a story. I also realize that I haven't mentioned any bad guy really, but I promise that it will come. I just needed to add some more structure before I could really get into it. Anyways, I'll have another chapter posted today hopefully. **

_~KimKo03~_


	6. Plans and Parties

**Tory's POV**

Ben was the first to reach Blake and I. He planted himself in front of us and just stood there. "Blake, this is Ben, one of the guys I was telling you about" I told Blake. Shelton and Hi finally reached us at that point. "And this is Shelton and Hi". Shelton and Hi were civilized enough to wave and say hello, while Ben on the other hand just did a quick nod. _What is his problem_ I thought to myself. I remembered then that I had told the guys to meet me at the bunker to discuss the gunmen. Oops. "Hey, sorry that I wasn't at the bu- at the boat" I corrected myself quickly. "Coop got away and I ended up meeting Blake. He helped me look for Coop." The guys seemed to understand, except for Ben that is. He just continued to glare at Blake.

**Ben's POV**

There was something off with this Blake kid. We don't get many new people on the island, so I was naturally suspicious. I also didn't like how he kept shifting his gaze back to Tory. That annoyed me to no end. He was just as bad as Jason and I had only known him for less than 5 minutes. I noticed that Tory was giving me this look now, the one that said 'knock it off and be nice'. Whatever. I rolled my shoulders and regained my composure. I saw Hi looking back and forth between Blake, Tory and I. _He's gonna get a good laugh out of this when we leave._ Tory appeared like she was done talking with Blake for the moment, so I took my chance and pulled her to the side. "So what's the deal with meeting at the bunker?" I asked. "Get everyone to meet there Monday at noon. I'll have come up with a plan by then." She responded. I nodded.

**Tory's POV**

I told the guys that I was gonna give Blake the tour of the island, and was sorry again for not meeting them at the 'boat'. They all said goodbye and left. I was then alone with Blake. We started to talk again. We just talked about random stuff, until he said something very unexpected. "Yeah, so my mom wanted me to meet new people so she signed me up for the cotillion thing…" WAIT! There was no way he just said that. "Did you say you were signed up to be in the cotillion?" I asked, just to make sure I heard him right. "Yeah, and there's this Gala coming up, but it's going to be horrible because I know absolutely no one…". I stared wide eyed at him. "My dad's girlfriend signed me up too! But wait, there's a gala soon?" I had not known about this. Give it up to good ol' dad to forget to mention that… Blake just smiled. "Yep, it's Monday night. And now that you point out that you didn't know about it, which means you don't have a date… Would you maybe want to go with me?" He said the last part so sweetly that there was no way I would ever say no. "Of course I'll go with you!" I was ecstatic.

I did nothing on Sunday except sit around and daydream about Monday. How sad was it that I actually did want to dress up a little to impress Blake? But it took my mind off of other matters. Like the fact that there may still be someone trying to kill me… But none the less, my mood could not be brought down.

It was finally Monday. I had told Kit that I was going to hang with the guys for a bit, then come back to get ready for the Gala. He was a little confused by why I was happy about that. I let him wonder. I got to the bunker at exactly noon and found that everyone was already there. I looked at the guys and told them my theory and plan.

"So we all know that someone tried to shoot Ben and me on Friday. We were about 200 feet from LIRI which makes me wonder if it's related. There's just too much of a coincidence to not be connected. I think that they must be doing more illegal experiments, like with Cooper. The guy that I saw was dressed like a guard, but we all know that they don't carry guns. And what other reason would there be to heighten the security? So the plan is actually quite simple. Hi and Shelton, you're gonna go to the gate and break in while Ben and I keep watch. And before you say it Hi, your knowledge of the security may come in handy, and since Shelton is the only one who can pick a lock, it's automatically you two. If Ben or I see anything out of the ordinary, we will warn you. Simple Right? When we get in, we just snoop. Look for any evidence at all of anything illegal. The cops won't believe us without evidence so we have to find some. You guys got it?" I thought my plan was clever. The guys made me feel like I was crazy however. _They really should be use to it by now_ I thought. But in the end, after an hour of debating every possible flaw, thank you Shelton, we finally agreed. We would meet Tuesday Night here at 8.

The guys noticed I was in a rush to get going and they looked at me questioningly. "I have to go to the Gala." I explained. "Since when were you ever excited to go to that?" remarked Shelton. "Since she has a date. And his name is Blake." Smirked Hi. I looked at him. "How did you find out about that?" "Oh, I have my ways…" he said, which was actually a little creepy. "Whatever Hi" I walked out. "See ya guys later!" I yelled over my shoulder.

**Ben's POV**

Tory had a date with THAT guy? Why did it seem like nothing ever went right in my life. _Well, look on the bright side of things. What if her date turns out to be a total bust?_ Happy thoughts. Right. I guess I should just focus on the plan for tomorrow, and try to forget that she'll be spending time with Blake… Let's see how that works out.

**Tory's POV**

It was 6 o'clock when I came down the stairs. Whitney had come over to help, which I was actually grateful for once. I was wearing a knee length green dress that made my eyes seem even more green. Whitney had styled my hair so half of it was up in a knot of some sort, and half the flowing down my shoulders. I had put on a little make up, not too much cause I still hated the fake feeling. When I looked at the bottom of the steps, there was Blake. And I might say, he looked good. He had on a black tux with a bow tie of all things, but it worked for him. He smiled and took my arm at the bottom of the stairs and I actually posed for a few pictures with him. "You look amazing" he said. And I giggled! I was not acting like myself at all. We left the house and headed for the Gala.

I don't know if something was wrong with me, but the gala actually looked, well, beautiful. For the first half of the night, things went by smoothly and I actually stated to have fun. And then Jason showed up. He walked over to where I was standing, while Blake was getting us some punch. And he did what Jason does best: Flirt. I was holding off his advances long enough for Blake to see and come over. "Oh Jason" I said, "This is Blake. Blake, this is Jason." I saw Jason give Blake a once over, but he put out his hand anyways. Blake shook it in response. "I don't believe I have seen you hear before" said Jason. "I just moved here, and this is my first Gala. I was just happy to find out that Tory was also going." And with that, he put his arm around my waist and pulled my closer to him. I blushed slightly. Jason eyed Blake's arm around me, but said nothing. He nodded politely and excused himself. After he had walked off, I turned to Blake.

"You don't even know how much you saved me" I told him. He just laughed and looked down at me. I realized that he was still holding me and that we had suddenly gotten even closer. I looked up into his eyes… and he kissed me. It was a soft, sweet kiss. But there was something missing. It was nice, but it didn't make me have the urge to kiss him again. I blushed when I noticed that some people had started to look at us. I smiled up at him. It had actually been a good night. And from here on out, things just got worse.

**Cliff Hanger (kinda)! Well, I hope you enjoyed it. The next chapter should be up soon! Be prepared for the break-in in the next chapter! Some things aren't as they seem! Have a good night ya'll!**

**~KimKo03~**


	7. Breakins and Secrets

**Tory's POV**

Tuesday night seemed to come way to fast. I thought I would have an entire day to work out the kinks in my plan, even if Shelton did most of that already. I sighed and looked at my phone, 7:30 shinning up at me from the screen. I guess it was time to go. I got ready in my normal break-in apparel, which consisted of black skinny jeans, a black shirt with a black zip up hoodie that had pockets on the sleeves, and my black combat boots. I couldn't do anything to my hair so I just put it in a loose pony tail and headed off. I met the guys at the bunker around 7:50. They were all anxious so they got here early. I couldn't blame them, after all, our break-ins don't always go as planned. I went over the plan one more time just to make sure they understood. Hi and Shelton unlock the gate while Ben and I keep watch. We sneak in, snoop for evidence, then once we find it, or until we get caught (this thought courteous of Hi) we head back out. The guards change positions every 20 minutes, so that gives us 3 minutes to sneak in, 14 minutes to snoop, and 3 minutes to get out. Simple enough.

We stopped in the woods about 40 feet from the main entrance. It was time for everyone to flare.

**SNUP**

I flared instantly. Next was Hi, then Shelton. Ben, as usual, was last. I turned away, begging for him to flare. I dug through my bag, pretending to be preoccupied so Hi or Shelton could help him. When I turned back around, he had flared. This was odd because I heard no cry of pain, but whatever. He had flared and that's all that mattered.

**Ben's POV**

I of course, was the last to flare. I had been thinking about how much pain I was going to be in and how I was going to kill Hi after tonight when a thought popped into my head. _Tory could always kiss you again… _WOAH. Wait a minute. Had I really just thought that? But I continued to think about the last time she had helped me flare. Her lips on mine, her hair falling around my -**SNUP**- I had flared. Well, at least Hi didn't need to hurt me. But flaring had never come that easy before. I guess I had just needed more emotion involved. And thinking of Tory kissing me definitely did the trick. I turned to see Tory looking at me oddly, but she then turned away.

**Tory's POV**

Hi and Shelton were able to successfully get in the main entrance. The lock was the same, with just a few upgrades. Nothing that these two geniuses couldn't handle. We snuck inside and quietly made our way to Dr. Karsten's old lab. On the way, I noticed a new door. It was shiny and silver and looked like it was made of unbreakable steel. Hmmmm, now I wonder what could be behind this door. I stopped and called the guys back. The lock had a 6 digit entrance code. Crap, this was DEFINITELY an upgrade from the 3 digit code before. "Hi" I said "What would be the preset code for a lock like this? The others were 333, but this one…" I trailed off, unable to finish. We all looked at the door. "You could always try 123456…" Hi suggested. Ben, Shelton and I looked at him. "What? It was just a suggestion." I sighed. What the Hell? What have I got to lose? We're probably going to get caught anyways so… I punched in the six numbers. I heard a ding. I raised my eyebrows and looked at the guys. There was no way that actually worked. Ben helped me pull the door open and we went in. It looked like a jail cell area. There were bars, a bed and even a toilet. I noticed a tag hanging on one of the bars. I went over to it and picked it up, reading the tiny print.

Specimen#5

Specimen 5 shows signs of increased strength and mental abilities. The readings have been off the charts. Specimen also shows increased sensitivity to sounds, smells, and even touch. The Specimen is ready for the next stage of testing. Use extreme care. Do not make Specimen 5 angry.

I couldn't believe my eyes. I dropped the tag and walked back. The guys took one look at me and went to read the tag. "We have to get out of here. Now" I said. The guys agreed and we took off. We got back to the gate just in time. We had exactly 1 minute to make it out. I told Hi and Shelton to go first, and Ben and I would cover them. Right when they made it to the trees, I heard the guard.

**SNUP**

Just perfect. My flare had gone out. I noticed Ben's had as well. _Just perfect_, I thought again. I looked toward the guard coming. He was new, but wasn't one of the bad guys. He only had a night stick and flashlight. No gun. "Ben" I said "You go, I'll take the blame for this one. Just go without me". Ben looked at me and shook his head. "Do you trust me?" he asked. "Of course, but what are you pla-" I didn't get another word out.

**Ben's POV**

"Do you trust me?" I asked Tory, hoping for the reply I got. I didn't even wait for her to finish her sentence. I grabbed her arms pushed her up against the fence and pressed my lips on hers. I had only thought of this plan a second ago, but it was the best plan I had ever had. I knew the guard was close, and I was not going to let Tory take the blame alone. I moved so my mouth was by her ears and whispered "We have to make this believable." Well, Tory apparently didn't need to be told twice. She grabbed my sides and pulled me closer to her. Her arms then went around my neck, pulling my face down towards her as well. Her kiss deepened and her fingers laced in my hair. I could feel her kiss now, throughout my entire body.

**Tory's POV**

When Ben kissed me, I admit it, I froze for a second. But when he whispered in my ear to make it seem believable, I had this thing under control. I pulled him closer to me, brought his head down and I kissed him like there was no tomorrow. And all I could think was that this was way better than Blake's kiss. His kiss didn't even register compared to this. I wished I could have stayed like this forever. But after the short 45 seconds, the guard was upon us. "Gah, kids these days! You two! You can make out somewhere else! Get off the fence!" I was pretty sure I was as red as my hair at that moment. "Yeah, whatever man" Ben said as he stepped away from me and put his arm around my waist. I couldn't say a word. I just let Ben lead me off into the trees. _Wow… just… Wow… _was all I could think. When we got to the trees, Hi and Shelton were just staring at us. "What?" grumbled Ben "I had a plan and It worked." He then realized that he was still holding on to me and dropped his hand. "Let's just get out of here before that guard decides to make sure we left." And with that, he stalked off. I was still dumbfounded. Hi and Shelton looked back between Ben and I and then shared this look. Then they both started to grin. _This is so not good_ I thought. I finally snapped out of whatever trance I was in and followed Ben.

We all made it to the bunker and just sat there. Ben wouldn't look at me, and Shelton and Hi just continued to grin. I decided to be the mature one and talk about our findings. I swallowed and began "So, we learned something big tonight. A game changer to say in the least." Hi and Shelton started to giggle. I ignored them and continued. "My hunch was right. Someone has been testing, you all read that tag. And from what it told us, it's not good. Specimen 5 seems to have some of our same abilities. But we don't even know who, or even what, it is. "I have a suspicion" murmured Ben. We turned to look at him. "Doesn't it seem odd that Blake shows up not a week before we find out this critical information? Doesn't that seem strange to anyone else? I mean, I knew the guy was bad news, but I just couldn't place why. This has to be it." "Now wait a second! Blake has been nothing but nice to us since we met him! He hasn't given us one reason to suspect him!" I challenged back. There was no reason to suspect him. "You're just saying that because you kissed him" whispered Hi. I turned to him "What did you say?" Hi looked slightly embarrassed but repeated it. "You wouldn't suspect him because you have a thing for him" He said again while looking at the floor. I went wide eyed. How had he known about that? I was at the Cotillion, and he definitely wasn't there. "I ran into Jason this morning, when I was with my mom shopping. He told me you had a new 'boyfriend' and I asked who. He told me Blake and I just laughed and said that you were just being nice to him. He said that you had never been THAT nice to anyone before. He then told me he saw you kissing…" Hi ended his sentence there. I had a horrified look on my face for sure. I'm not sure what it was at the moment, the rage of the guys finding out, the guilt of not telling them, or maybe the effects of having just kissed Ben and him finding this out. I flared. But this time, it was worse than ever. The flare took over my entire body. Every inch of me becoming like fire, burning away at my skin. My head felt like someone had taken a jackhammer to it, and just continued to beat on it. I couldn't stand, couldn't move, I just fell to the floor. I finally blacked out.

I don't know how long I had been out for, but I found myself in the bunker still, my head laying on someone. I tried to move but I couldn't, my head still in a lot of pain. I opened my eyes a bit more, looking around the room as best as I could. Coop had magically appeared at my feet. It was still dark out. I waited a few more minutes, until the pain had faded mostly away, and then I tried to push myself up. A hand grabbed my arm and stopped me. I looked up and saw that last person I had expected to see, Ben. "Shhh, take it slowly" He said. I had been lying on his chest, and must have woken him when I moved. "You've been out of it for about 4 hours. Here, let me help." He gently moved my body up into a sitting position, leaning me against the wall. The pain was pretty much gone now, just a slight thudding in my head. When he was satisfied that I wasn't going to faint again, he looked at me and said "We need to talk".

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><p><strong>Did ya'll like it? Hopefully this raised some new questions for ya! I tried to make it super long because I don't know the next time I'll be able to update. My Spring Break just ended so I start school tomorrow. Please Review! Have a great new week! <strong>

**~KimKo03~**


	8. The 'Talk'

**AHH! So I know it's been like forever since I've updated! I feel so bad! But my summer has officially started! YAY! So here you go, another chapter of Taking Risks :D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Virals, only the wonderful Kathy Reichs does.**

_**Previously**_:

_I don't know how long I had been out for, but I found myself in the bunker still, my head laying on someone. I tried to move but I couldn't, my head still in a lot of pain. I opened my eyes a bit more, looking around the room as best as I could. Coop had magically appeared at my feet. It was still dark out. I waited a few more minutes, until the pain had faded mostly away, and then I tried to push myself up. A hand grabbed my arm and stopped me. I looked up and saw that last person I had expected to see, Ben. "Shhh, take it slowly" He said. I had been lying on his chest, and must have woken him when I moved. "You've been out of it for about 4 hours. Here, let me help." He gently moved my body up into a sitting position, leaning me against the wall. The pain was pretty much gone now, just a slight thudding in my head. When he was satisfied that I wasn't going to faint again, he looked at me and said "We need to talk"._

_**Tory's POV**_

'We need to talk'…I slowly met Ben's eyes. He opened his mouth to start talking but I quickly beat him to it. "Look, Ben. I'm sorry I flipped out on you before, with the whole Blake thing. But before you say anything, I just want you to know that there's nothing going on with him and I. What happened at the Cotillion, it was a onetime thing. I mean, Blake's a great guy, but I hardly know him. Actually, I don't really know him at all. He just moved here and… well you get it." I decided to stop talking. I was just rambling on and on.

At that last sentence I had turned away from Ben, not wanting to see his expression. I glanced over at him quickly, just to see him staring at me._ Well, this is awkward…_ "So, if there's nothing else that you want to talk about, especially cause you didn't do any talking…" I paused, waiting for a response, waiting for any reply really. "I don't want you going near Blake again" was his only response.

I stared at him, confused, then slightly annoyed. Come on, I had just told him that there was nothing going on and now he wants me to just ignore Blake? "Excuse me? You're telling me to stay away from him? I literally just told you there was nothing going on!" I shouted at him. He gave me a cold glare. "I don't trust him. I still think it's more than just a coincidence that he shows up right before we find out about the experiment. Look at the evidence, isn't that your thing? One: He happens to find you in the forest, which is huge. Two: He also is a part of the Cotillion. Three: He falls for you and 'saves' you from Jason…" I didn't give him the chance to finish.

I stood up and scowled down at him. "Look Ben, I really don't know what your problem is with Blake. Am I that bad that no guy would ever want to 'fall' for me? Blake at least treats me right. I'm done listening to you accuse him of being one of the bad guys. When you get the guts to tell me what's really bothering you, you know where to find me. This 'talk' is officially over." and with that I walked out. I really was done with him. He treated Jason like crap every time he was around, and I was not going to let him do the same to Blake.

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><p><strong>So I know this was super short :P I'm writing this at midnight so it's probably not my best work and I am sorry for that. I'm trying to decide how much longer I should make this story. I have enough for probably 5 more chapters (good sized). And don't worry; there will be more Jason, Hi, Shelton, and Blake! Please feel free to Review! I will have the next chapter up soon(hopefully)! <strong>

**~KimKo03~**


	9. Regret

**Hey, I'm back! Thank you so much to everyone that reviewed! Here's the next installment of the story! I hope you enjoy! :D**

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><p><em><strong>Ben's POV<strong>_

Why am I such an idiot? How could I even insinuate that no guy would ever like Tory! I watched as she turned away from me, leaving the bunker in a fiery rage. I have never seen her this mad before. And just to make it even better, she was mad at ME. Why hadn't I just come clean and told her that I liked her? _Because you're scared she won't feel the same way about you…_ Stupid conscious… But it was right. Was I really going to risk telling her, and her rejecting me? I don't know if I could deal with that right now. But that kiss… Yes, it had only been for 45 seconds, but it was pure bliss. And I had felt (hopefully I wasn't imagining it) her kiss back with the same intent. I was sure she had liked it. But I had to go and ruin that. Awesome.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~**One week later**~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tory has been ignoring me for the past week. We started school yesterday, and she hasn't even bothered to glance in my direction. Hi and Shelton are confused and worried. They keep asking about what happened in the Bunker that night. I just can't find it in me to tell them. I mean, it IS my fault that Tory's not talking to me. The bell rings, letting us out for the day. I go to my locker and get my stuff, ready to leave. I hear a cute laugh, one I could never forget. I turn to find Tory standing next to Blake, laughing at whatever he said. She glances over in my direction. Our eyes meet. There's something in them, a mixture of sorrow, yet anger (if that's even possible).She quickly turns away, and is pulled along by Blake. I turn toward my locker and slam it shut. Shelton, who was nearby, comes over. "She's still not talking to you huh?" he asks. I shake my head. "Tory will get over it, she always does. You know she's not one to hold a grudge" "Yeah, I guess" I mumble. I really hope that was true.

**_Tory's POV_**

This past week has been awful. It's insane that I've managed to stay away from Ben this long. I mean, I'm still mad at him, but not to the degree that I started at. I have forgiven what he's said about Blake, but one thing that he said really stuck. Was I really that bad? I mean, Jason's one thing. He flirts with everyone, even if he does pay special attention to me. But Blake? Ben didn't even know him. I look over at Blake, who's pulling me along the hallway. I look back over to where Ben was standing. Shelton's over there now. How I miss hanging with them. I still talk to Shelton, but I miss the fun ALL of us had. The crazy adventures, just chilling in the bunker. I admit, I was crushing on Ben Blue hugely before the fight. I replay that night, how It could have gone so different If only we hadn't seen that note about Specimen 5. That kiss… "Tory? Tory? TORY?" I look up, startled. Blake has apparently been talking to me for quite some time. Oops. "Yeah, sorry. I was in my own world for a second" I say, smiling up at him. He just laughs it off. "It's cool. Hey, so I was wondering if maybe you would li-" My phone started ringing. "Hold that thought for just a minute please!" I saw that it was Hi. That's odd, we just talked a little bit ago.

"Hey Hi. What's going on? Is everything all right?" "Yes, well no, not really. I'm calling a meeting at the Bunker. I need to talk to you, but just you. Can you meet me there at 4?" He sounded worried, kind of anxious actually. _This cannot be good… _I thought to myself. "Hi, I'll be over right away. Bye". I looked over at Blake apologetically. "I'm so sorry, but something seems to be wrong with Hi. I have to go." Blake looks slightly disappointed, but shakes it off. "It's all cool. Your friend needs you. Go." I smile, give him a quick hug, and turn away. I turn around again though. "What were you going to ask me? Before I got the call?" I ask him. He looks sheepishly to the side, then back at me. "I wanted to know if you would like to go out with me." My grin broadens. "Of course!" I say. "Awesome, so can I pick you up at 8?" he asks. "sounds perfect!" I exclaim. Then I turn, and make my way toward the bunker. There was no way anything could ruin my night.

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><p><strong>So I know this wasn't much, But It felt like a good place to stop for now. What does Hi want, and why did he sound worried? And how do you feel about Tory going on a date with Blake? Please post your guesses! I'm actually going to start writing the next chapter right after I post this, so hang in there! The next chapter is going to be short, but I feel that it is largely needed. I hope it answers some questions you may have had.<strong>

**~KimKo03~**


	10. Phone Call

_**Blake's POV**_

I watched Tory turn away and leave. That giant smile that I had dropped down into a slight frown. I pulled out my phone and dialed the number I had memorized. "The plan is in action… No, she doesn't suspect a thing. Tonight we will act… Of course I'm not growing attached! How could I ever like someone like her? I mean, she's a freak, she's not even human any more… I understand. And listen, there's nothing to be concerned about. I know what I have to do if things get messy. I'll call you after it's done. And Dad… Trust me. I got this one.

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><p><strong>SOOOOOO I know this was incredibly short, but I really needed to put it up. So Blake's the bad guy? Who'd have guessed? ;) The next chapter will be up shortly. And I've decided to at least have another 4 chapters after this, because these last couple have been way to short. Please Review!<strong>

**~KimKo03~**


	11. Just a Date

**Tory's POV**

I got to the Bunker as fast as I could. I looked at my phone, 3:50, I was a little earlier. I opened the door to the bunker (We had replaced it for a little privacy, not that people came here often…) and walked on in. I stopped dead in my tracks. Hi was here, but so was Shelton, and Ben. My eyes widened in surprise then I narrowed them at Hi. "Oh, so you need to talk to me, and JUST me huh?" I questioned him. "What's really going on?" Hi shifted uncomfortably under my gaze, and stepped closer to Shelton. "Haha, it's actually a funny story, which Shelton would love to tell you. Take it away Shelton!" and with that Hi stepped completely behind Shelton, leaving my death glare to him. Shelton gulped audibly. "So Hi and I know something's up between you two. And since neither of you will talk to us, we decided to let you talk it out amongst yourselves." Ben then walked toward him and stopped 4 feet from him. "And what if we don't want to 'talk it out'?" "Well, that's going to make this very awkward…" Shelton replied. "Wait, make what very awkwa-". I didn't get to finish my sentence because at that moment Hi and Shelton ran out of the bunker and closed the door behind them. I then heard a loud thud. _What the…?_ I ran over to the door and tried to open it. It wouldn't budge. _No they did not just do that!_ "SHELTON! HI! YOU UNLOCK THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW!" I screamed at them. "Ummm, no. Not until you and Ben are done being idiots and get over whatever it is you're fighting about" came a reply from the other side of the door. _This cannot be happening, this cannot be happening… _I kept thinking to myself. I took a deep breath and turned to face Ben. He was standing there dumbfounded. _Well I guess he didn't know anything about this… _"So I guess we should talk…" I started.

**Ben's POV**

Did they really lock me in a room with Tory? Do they want me to be killed? I stared, confused and slightly in shock, at the door. "So I guess we should talk…" said Tory. I turned to face her. She wanted to talk? After all that happened between us, she wanted to reconcile? Well why not. "Yeah, I guess we should…" I trailed off. I didn't know what to say. I had no idea how much she had forgiven me for. "Look, I'm sorry for what I said before. I didn't mean to insinuate that no guy would ever like you, it's just seemed odd for Blake to always be there. I mean… Gah, I don't even know what I'm saying…" I turned away from her, presenting her with my back. I heard her sigh. I waited for an outburst, but got something completely different instead. "I'm sorry too. I overreacted when you started talking about Blake. It hurt though, how you said that no guy could fall for me. Besides Jason, no guy has ever really taken an interest in me. Well, Chance did, but he was just using me…" _I took an interest in you..._ I thought to myself. "…And Blake really is a nice guy, you might actually like him. He's into a lot of the same stuff we are! Hiking, exploring, animals…" _I really doubt that I'll like him._ "Ben, are you going to say anything? I've been doing all the talking." Tory was staring at me intently. "Ummm, yeah. He seems to be fine now. Maybe it was me that overreacted. Can we be friends again?" I asked her, pleading with my eyes. _What has she done to me? I'm practically begging her to be my friend again… I am so screwed…_

**Tory's POV**

Ben wants to be friends again? This day couldn't get any more perfect! First Blake asks me out… CRAP! I have a date with him tonight! I look at my phone, 6:49. OH MY GOD! I was going to be late. I still had to get back home, shower, change… I looked at Ben. "Of course we can be friends again, but I have to go now. We can discuss some more stuff later." He looked at me, confused. "Why do you have to go now? Have a hot date that you can't miss?" He joked. "Yeah actually. Blake asked me out today. I'm supposed to meet him at 8. It's almost 7 now." Ben's face dropped. "Of course, Blake's your date…" he mumbled. I shrugged it off. He'll get over it and he and Blake will get along eventually. _You know you don't really believe that…_ Shut up stupid conscious! And now I just yelled at myself. Great. I turned toward the door. "Shelton! Hi! Ben and I made up. Can you please let us out now?" "Well Hi, since we did listen to the entire conversation, are you convinced that they are friends again?" "Well Shelton, I do in fact think that they are. So I say we can let them out." _Thank God, Thank God, Thank God!_ The door opened and I almost plowed through the two boys. "I have to go now. We can all video chat when I get home. I should be home around 11:30." And with that I ran off.

I made it home on time, was able to shower and get changed all within 45 minutes. I was practically winded from all the running around. Blake never told me where we were going, so I had to improvise what to wear. I finally decided on black skinny jeans with a dark green blouse, it was slightly dress up, but not too much. I found a pair of green converse with matched the shirt nicely. I also grabbed my black jacket, the one with the zippers on the sleeves. Now I had my hair. It was super frizzy from the shower. I decided to brush it out a bit, then just let it hang down. I brought a hair tie and a couple of bobby pins just in case we ended up doing something a bit more adventurous. I looked at myself in the mirror. I didn't look half bad. I picked up my purse (Whitney bought it for me, and I never thought I would actually use it) and put my brush and wallet in it. I put my phone in my back pocket (a habit I should really stop. I think I've broken like 8 phones this way) and headed downstairs. I had apparently spent a good 10 minutes looking at myself in the mirror and fixing my hair (I'm turning into such a girl!) and it was 7: 45. Blake would be here in 15 minutes. I sat on the couch and decided to text Ben, making sure he was okay. _You still so like him_… If I could, I think I would kill my conscious.

**Hey Ben. So are you okay?**

_I'm Fine._

**Okay. I just wanted to make sure. You seemed a little off when I was leaving.**

_It's nothing you need to worry about. But Tory?_

**Yeah?**

_Be careful. I know you don't believe me, but there's still something about Blake that makes me not trust him. But I could learn to like him I suppose._

Whoa. Did Ben just say that he could learn to like Blake? I also found it kind of endearing that he cares about my safety. _Well DUH! He totally likes you!_ Ben couldn't like me as anything more than a friend… Right? The doorbell rang.

**Okay. I will be. And Ben, thanks for caring. GTG! I'll ttyl!**

I put my phone back in my pocket and went to the door. Blake was outside, in a pair of dark blue jeans, black gym shoes, and a button up shirt. "Well I'm way too dressed up." I stated to him. He just laughed. "Nah, you look perfect" he said with a smile. I smiled back. "So, where are we going exactly?" "Oh, that's a surprise. Come on, let's go." He took my hand and led me to his car. He even opened the door for me. "Wow, what a gentleman" I remarked. He just smiled wider. "Now, you have to promise not to look where were going. It's a really cool spot and I kind of want to keep it a secret okay?" He asked. I just laughed and covered my eyes with my hands. "Good" he said and started driving. I'm not sure how long we drove for, but it had to be over 30 minutes. I'm pretty sure at one point I fell asleep. I woke up, and all Blake said was to keep my eyes covered. I smiled; he was really into this whole surprise thing. Another increment of time passed, and I was just about to ask if we were close when he stopped the car. "You can open your eyes now. We have a little hike to make, but it would probably be easier if you could actually see where you were going." I nodded and smiled some more. He led me through a forest like area, down a path and we finally arrived at a cave. And I must admit, it was beautiful. "Oh my God, this is one of the most amazing places I have ever seen." I said while looking at him. "Would you like to go inside?" He asked. I nodded excitedly. He took my hand and started leading me in.

We were in complete darkness. He released his hold on my hand. I reached around, trying to connect to him again, but I couldn't find him. "Blake?... Blake?... BLAKE?" I practically screamed. A strong hand, definitely not Blake's, wrapped itself over my mouth, while another grabbed my waist, pulling me close. I heard Blake's voice, somewhere in the cave. "Now Tory, you really should know better than to wander off with strangers." He laughed, a laugh I might add that was not cute or funny, but evil and frightening. I struggled to get loose. I lifted my foot and slammed my heal hard against the man's knee that was holding me and scraped it against his shin down to his foot. He released his hold on me slightly, enough for me to wiggle one of my arms free. I sent my elbow flying back and it connected with his head. He fell back, slightly dazed. I took this opportunity to run out of the cave. I dropped my purse (It was just getting in my way) and ran like crazy. I tried to remember the way back to Blake's car but couldn't. I tripped over a log and fell face first into the ground. _God Dammit!_ I thought, _I need to flare!_ I shut my eyes tight and concentrated.

**SNUP**

When I opened my eyes, the whole world was clearer. Right as I started to get up, I realized I was too late. Something metal connected with the back of my head, and I fell again. The last thing I saw, while blood dripped from my head, was Blake's face. But it was no longer how I remembered it. It was ugly, sneering at me. And then the world went black.

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><p><strong>So how did everyone like it? Is it what you expected? Please Review and tell me what you think! Any questions concerns? I tried to make it longer because I owe you guys at least that much. And thank you to everyone that reviewed! You inspired me to write more. I was at a bit of an impasse but I found my footing and got some new ideas. I would especially like to thank _kgorange_ and _emmylia6_! You both have reviewed multiple times and I thank you for that! The next chapter will explain some, erm, 'stuff' (I don't want to give it away!) Hope you enjoyed! :D**

**~KimKo03~**


	12. The Story Behind it All

**Thank You to everyone that reviewed! Here's the next chapter!**

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><p><strong>Ben's POV<strong>

It was 11:30. I had been lying on my bed, thinking about everything that had happened today. Tory and I were friends again. It felt good to know, but a small part of me was upset that we weren't more. I sighed, then turned on video chat. Shelton and Hi were on, but no sign of Tory. Hmmm, maybe she's running a little late, I thought. So I talked to Shelton and Hi for a while, just passing the time until Tory got on. Shelton was fiddling with some new gadget (I honestly had no idea what it was) and Hi was eating, again. I looked over at my clock. 12:30 blared back at me in green letters. Now I was slightly worried. Tory was an hour late. Normally I wouldn't have been concerned, but she was out with Blake.

"Guys, do you find it weird that Tory's not back yet?" I questioned the two. "Not really. A little I guess." Replied Shelton. "But she's late a lot, there's no reason to be alarmed" said Hi through a mouthful of food. I nodded "yeah, I guess…" Both of the guys seemed to notice my distress. "Is there any reason? You seem to be particularly worried about her" commented Shelton. I glared at them. "No, it's just that Tory said she would video chat with us after her date with Blake, which was supposed to end at-". "Tory had a date with Blake?" Hi practically screamed. "I now understand why you're worried. Or should I say jealous…" Shelton said with a smirk. "I'm not jealous!" I yelled at them. "Uh Huh…" they said in unison. "Look, can we please just let it go. I'll text her. Okay?" They just smiled widely.

**Tory's POV**

I woke up with a pain in the back of my head. I reached up and touched it softly. There was dried blood in my hair. Great, just what I need. I propped myself up, trying to get a better view of where I was. That's when everything came back. I remembered my date with Blake, the car ride, the cave, the man, and the woods. The last thing I remembering seeing was Blake's face, laughing at me after he hit me with something. I sat up quickly, looking around. I was in some sort of cell, there were bars on three sides of me, with what appeared to be ground, or soil as the forth wall. I relaxed my breathing and tried to flare.

**SNUP**

"There's no point in flaring" a voice in front of me said. I pinpointed where the voice was and my eyes finally saw it, or him to be more exact. Blake was standing right in front of me, about 15 feet away. I narrowed my eyes at him. He then flicked on a lantern. He seemed completely calm, even with my gold eyes shining back at him. "These bars are made from titanium steel. They are unbreakable" he stated. "Not even with your powers could you ever break them" he chuckled. "Blake, WHY? What have I ever done to you? I just met you a couple of weeks ago!" I asked, honestly confused. "Tory, Tory, Tory. It's not you. It's what you are. Your 'powers'. Let me tell you a story.

There once was a little boy, he had everything that he could ever dream of, Two wonderful parents that loved him, a wonderful house, a wonderful school, an overall wonderful life. Then came the day when his mother got sick. Cancer. Untreatable. The boy watched as his mother got sicker and sicker. Five years passed, the worst five years of his life. One day, his dad was doing research and came across something strange. There was a research lab that had been found doing illegal experiments. One of the scientists, you may know him, Karsten, was a friend of the father. He said that they had found this virus. It made dogs stronger. He said that some kids had been infected, and had shown signs of increased physical ability, mental ability, and possibly even healing capabilities. But then Karsten was killed. The father went to the lab, he has his ways of course, and was able to obtain the last trace of the virus. He injected it into the boy's mother. Miraculously, she began to heal. But there was a side effect. She got angry. The virus brought out the primal side to her. She began to go crazy, hurting people. And one day she tried to hurt the boy. That's when the father knew it was time. The boy had to watch as his father shot his mother." A tear rolled down Blake's face. "So you see Victoria, I am simply doing the world a favor. I'm going to kill you, and your friends, before you get the chance to hurt others."

"Blake, I am so sorry for all that you have been through. But we're not like that. We don't get uncontrollable rage. Please, let me go. I won't tell anyone wh-" I didn't get the chance to finish. Blake grabbed the lantern, and stalked out. I sat there, alone in the dark. I had no idea where I was, and no way of escape. I took long, deep breaths. Think, think. There had to be a way out. I looked around the room some more. Besides the exit that Blake left out of, there was one other exit. I took a breath, inhaling the smells around me. Then I faced toward that door and took another breath, concentrating on what lay outside. I smelled more dirt, some people, and finally trees. So I was underground, but I was near a forest. I inhaled again, letting the scents take over my senses. Wait, it wasn't just a forest, it was THE forest. The forest I had hiked through when Blake was taking me to the cave. It had the same smelling trees; even the grass smelled the same. Okay. So here's what I know.

I was underground, in a cave of some sort.

I was in a forest, approximately 40-45 minutes away from home.

Blake was insane.

I was stuck in a cage.

Things certainly did not look good for me. I sighed. If only I could get a hold of the guys, they could find a way to help me. Then it dawned on me. We were all connected. I just needed them to flare for it to work. I also had to hope that I would be able to send the message. The whole message thing was only suppose to work when we were all together. Please, please let me somehow find a way around that.

**Ben's POV**

It was 1 am. Tory had not shown up to video chat. She hadn't responded to any of my texts. Something was definitely wrong. I called Shelton and Hi, saying to meet me at the bunker. They grumbled and complained, but they knew something was wrong as well, so they agreed. We all got to the bunker, and found Coop there. He looked panicked. I assumed Tory hadn't come home. This is not good, not good at all. "Tory hasn't responded to any message or call. She has to be in trouble. Let's flare and try to find her." Both nodded and started to flare.

**SNUP**

**SNUP**

I was last, per usual. I was getting aggravated. At all the times when I didn't need to flare, the one time that I actually need to flare…" I was shaking with anger. I heard a slight cough, and then Hi kicked me, hard. I stumbled forward and turned to face him, my eyes full of rage.

**SNUP**

"Easy Benny boy! I was only trying to help, which I did!" he said, backing away with his hands raised. "thanks" I mumbled. I stood up straight. "Okay, now who knows something about tracking?" And with that question, I fell to the ground, pain exploding my head. I looked around and saw Shelton and Hi on the ground as well. What was going on?

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><p><strong>Yep, so here ya go! I hope you enjoyed it! So Blake isn't a viral? What did you think about his story? And what in the world is going on with Ben, Shelton and Hi? So many questions! Please Review! It makes my day! :) Stay Stellar!<strong>

**~KimKo03~**


	13. Escape

**Tory's POV**

I sat on the dirt floor, and just thought. There had to be a way around this message thing. What if I was able to send just one mental image? I had done it when we were all underwater during the treasure hunt. But I was nowhere near any of the virals. And they all had to be flared. The likely hood of that was almost in the negatives. _Someone must have noticed that I'm not there_, I thought to myself. I had told the guys that I would be home around 11:30 and it's now… crap! I don't have my phone! I thought back to when I had last seen it. It was when I was walking with Blake to the cave, I put it in my purse so I wouldn't lose it… MY PURSE! THAT'S IT! I almost yelled for joy. I had dropped my purse outside of the cave, which was in the same forest that I was in now! They could track me! I was giddy with excitement. Then it all fell apart. What if I couldn't send the message over this great of distance? What if they hadn't flared? _No, must be positive. I'm Victoria Brennan, I can do anything_. I took a deep breath and concentrated. I pictured the entrance of the cave, I made a note of the colors of the trees, even what it smelled like. When I was positive that I had the image, I took another deep breath and looked for the connection. I let my mind wander, willing it to reach. I concentrated every ounce of my focus on finding them. And then I found them. They were all flared, and even all together, which was great. But the connection was growing weaker by the second; I had to send it now. I took one more breath and basically forced the image into their minds. I let out an audible gasp. It hurt, it hurt too much. I fell to my hands and knees, breathe ragged. Then I collapsed.

**Ben's POV**

My head was spinning. But then I saw it. It was an image, like a mental snapshot. There was a cave, some trees, I could even see the grass in detail. I noticed a purse lying on the ground, half covered by dirt. I only noticed it because it seemed out of place. Then the image faded. I let out a breathe I hadn't realized I was holding. I slowly lifted my head to look at the other guys. They were looking around too. Hi's eyes were huge. Shelton appeared to be trying to comprehend what just happened. I got up slowly, feeling a little dizzy. "Did you guys just see…" I didn't know how to continue. "Yeah" both guys said. _What was that?_ I thought to myself. Shelton coughed slightly. "This is gonna sound weird, but I know that place. My parents dragged me there once, when we first moved here. It was actually pretty cool" he said. "But why did we all get that image? I mean, the one time that has happened was when we were underwater, in trouble, and Tory- SHIT!" I pronounced. The guys just looked at me startled. "Tory must be in trouble. This has to be a clue to where she is!" I turn to Shelton. "Can you get us to the cave?" He nods. "Good, I'll grab my dad's truck and then we can go". Shelton and Hi nodded in agreement.

**One hour later**

We were almost there. We only got lost once, luckily. Finally Shelton said to pull over. I did then we all got out of the car and started the hike. "Are you positive this is the right way?" Hi complained. "Yes, for the fourth time. It's just up this hill a little bit farther." I just concentrated on finding Tory. What if Blake had hurt her, or worse… _No, I must NOT think like that. After all, this is Tory I'm thinking about. She would be able to fight anyone off, with her flare of course._ But then I thought back. There had been gunmen after us a while ago. She wouldn't have attacked them if they had guns. I sighed. We needed to find her, and fast.

We found the entrance to the cave. For some reason, we all still had our flares. But I wasn't complaining, it would help us locate Tory. "Okay, so this is the place. Tory has to be near here. Otherwise she wouldn't have sent us that image. What are we missing?" We all thought. "The purse!" exclaimed Hi! How had I not thought of that sooner? I had noticed it when I first got the 'message'. _You're just really worried about Tory so you're not thinking straight_, I told myself. Seemed like good enough excuse. It sucked that Tory was the one with the excellent sense of smell. I took a deep breath of the purse. Yep, it was definitely Tory's. I made the other guys take a whiff too, just in case. Then the tracking began. We all went in separate directions at first, but then one point had us all together. This one spot reeked (in a good way) of Tory. She must have fallen. Then Hi gasped. I looked at him. He was staring at a spot on the ground, looking slightly queasy. I looked, and felt a knot in my stomach. There was blood, not a lot, but enough that she could be in even deeper trouble than we thought. "Let's continue on" I said sternly. Hi and Shelton complied. We walked for what seemed forever. Every now and then we would lose the scent, but pick it up a few feet later. The scent was growing stronger now, letting us know we were close. We stopped about 100 feet from the entrance of another cave. We hid behind some trees and just watched. There were a few people coming out of the cave, looking like they were leaving. I relaxed a bit and took a breath, seeing if Tory was in there. She was, and not far either. And I had a plan.

I turned toward the guys. "Look, I need one of you to stay here in case more people come. The other will come with me to the entrance and be a lookout there. I will go in, grab Tory, then we'll escape. Easy enough okay?" Hi's hand shot up. "Yes Hi?" "How do we know that there's not like 100 guys with guns down there waiting for us?" "We don't. But we don't really have a choice. We have to save Tory. She would do the same for us." I explained. "Then in that case, I volunteer to stay here" Typical Hi. "Okay, Shelton lets go" I said and silently started toward the entrance. We darted behind trees whenever we heard someone. We made it to the cave and I told Shelton to hide behind a tree that was about 10 feet from the entrance and off to the side. Then I went in.

It was dark. But luckily, I was still flaring. I stayed close to the walls. I noticed that the cave went down slightly. I went swiftly but quietly. I entered a huge cavern. I noticed another door across from where I was. Then I saw it. A cage. And inside was Tory. She was lying on the ground, not moving. _Please let her just be unconscious_ I begged to myself. I snuck over to one side of the cage.I could see her frame rise and fall. _Thank God._ I looked at the bars, they looked sturdy. But I was a viral, and to top that, I was the viral with super strength. I grabbed two of the bars next to each other and pulled. Nothing. Not even the slightest bend. Great. I looked around the room. I saw a table, a chair, but nothing else. It would have been convenient if someone had forgotten the key to the cage on the table, but no such luck. Then I heard voices. "Yeah, the boss wants that girl gone by morning. Not sure why, it's not like she's causing trouble…. No I can handle it. She's out right now, so she'll be easy to get." I heard footsteps coming toward us through the door that I hadn't entered. I saw the beam of a flashlight. Crap, I have to do this quick. I snuck to the other side of the cavern, opposite the cage. I waited until the guy was right in front of the door and then launched myself at him. I hit his head hard against the cage door. Not hard enough to kill him, but he fell flat, unconscious. Tory moved slightly. She looked around. Her eyes were normal, not flared. "Who's there?" they said. After a second pause I saw her eyes make out my shape. She squinted slightly, then her eyes went wide. "Ben?" she whispered? I just smiled. I reached for the unconscious mans keys. "Yeah, Tory, it's me. Give me one sec, and I'll have you out of here in no time." I went to the door and turned the key. The door creaked, then was silent. I stepped in halfway, enough to help her, but so that if anyone came I could take them. Tory started to get up, then stumbled into me. I caught her in one swift movement. "Sorry" she said, blushing slightly. I just chuckled. "Tory, can you flare?" She nodded and closed her eyes. She grimaced. Then let out a loud gasp. I looked around. No one had heard. "Tory, what's wrong?" I asked, concerned.

**SNUP**

She opened her eyes, they were gold. "Nothing, my head just hurts. Let's go." I nodded, not believing her completely. Her eyes had started to water, probably from the pain. I would have to ask her about it later though. I put her arm around my shoulder and grabbed her by the waist. She could walk, just not fast. We made our way out of the cave. When we were outside, Shelton grabbed her other arm and helped carry her. When we go to the tree's where Hi was, we set Tory down. "Guy's I'm fine. Really. Please, let's get away from here." She said, practically pleading. "Tory, look at me" She did, and what I saw I will never forget. Tory looked scared. Not like scary movie scared, or even that she had just been kidnapped. There was something more, something she hadn't told us yet. But now was not the time. We had to get to our bunker. I picked her up and told Shelton to lead the way. Tory closed her eyes and laid her head against my chest. I could feel her breathing become slower. She was asleep in minutes. _What could put that much strain on her that she could fall asleep now?_ I thought to myself. We finally made it back to the car.

I put Tory in the back with Hi, started off. I kept looking back in the rearview mirror, concerned. I drove a little faster, wanting to get to the bunker as fast as I could, but not wanting to draw attention to ourselves. It only took 35 minutes to get back. I returned the car (luckily my dad hadn't noticed it was gone) and I carried Tory to the bunker. I put her on the bench and put her head on my lap. After a few minutes, she shot up, pushing me away. I fell to the floor, surprised and confused. Her eyes were gold.

**Tory's POV**

I remember passing out after the message. I remember waking up to a loud noise, and seeing Ben. I don't remember passing out, or even making it back to the bunker. But I certainly remember the dream.

_I was back in the bunker, Ben had just saved me. I woke up with my head in his lap. I smiled at him. I moved toward him, moving my arms toward his neck. He thought I was trying to hug him. What a surprise he got. I grabbed his neck and pushed him down. I placed my thumbs on the center of his neck and pushed hard. I heard a crunch. His eyes went wide, and then he stopped moving. I looked over to Shelton and Hi. They looked terrified. I grabbed Hi, he was closest to me, and threw him against the wall. I heard a sickening crack, saw blood. I turned my attention to Shelton, who was trying to get to the door. I shot past him, standing right in front of him. "Why Tory? What happened to you that could make you go crazy like this!" He asked, scared out of his mind. "It's what's inside of me" I said simply, before grabbing him and snapping his neck._ I was watching this as if I was a ghost. I shouted and screamed at myself, wanting to stop it, but I couldn't do anything. I was powerless as I watched myself kill my friends.

And that's when I woke up.

I shot up, not really noticing that I pushed someone away. I looked around wildly before I covered my face with my hands. I felt tears leaking out. I took deep breaths, in and out, focusing only on the sound of my own heart beating. After what seemed like 10 minutes, I removed my hands and wiped my face. I looked around the bunker. I saw Ben sitting on the floor, worried eyes locking on mine. Hi and Shelton were leaning against the walls, unsure of what to do. Ben seemed to have figured something out, so he turned toward the others and silently beckoned them out. They agreed, looking at me sadly. I watched as Ben got up, and sat near me, not next to me (he was probably worried I would push him again). I avoided eye contact. I felt his hand take my chin, making my look at him. "Tell me" he said softly. So I did. I told him what Blake had told me."…And then she tried to kill him" I said. "His father was forced to kill her, right in front of him. And I had this dream. I-I-I killed all of you…" I turned away again. Ben took my hand. I looked him straight in the eye. "The virus, it made her go crazy. She hurt the people she loved the most. Blake was right. I'm a danger to everyone." "NEVER say that" Ben exclaimed. "But-" I started. "NO. That is not the Tory I know. You would never hurt anyone, let alone us. What happened to Blake's mom was horrible, but you're not her. You will never be her." I just looked at him. Then I gave in. I grabbed him and hugged. He responded after a second, wrapping his hand around me. After a few minutes, I released my hold on him. "Thank you Ben" I said quietly. He just nodded. "Now what are we going to do about Blake?" I asked. Ben just sighed. "We'll figure something out".

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><p><strong>So? What did you guys think? I know it got really serious and dark, but I wanted to put it in to show why Blake took it so seriously. I also wanted more BenxTory :P So Sue me. I'll probably only have one or two more chapters after this, depending on how long I want to make it. What do you think should happen with Blake?<strong>

**Please Review! Tell me what you think of Tory's dream!**

**Stay Stellar**

**~KimKo03~**


	14. Finale

**Hey guys! Sad to say, this will be the last chapter of Taking Risks :( But don't worry, because I'm going to try to make it an awesome chapter! And here you go, the final installment of Taking Risks! :)**

**P.S: There is some swearing, more than I usually use, but it's not that bad.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Virals (sad face). If I did, Tory and Ben would totally be a couple now, or at least flirting more ;)**

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><p><strong>Tory's POV<strong>

It's been about a month since the incident with Blake. No one really knows what happened to him. We did eventually go back to that one cave, but nothing remained, well except for the giant metal cage and a few papers here and there. People around school didn't notice that he just stopped coming, not even the teachers. It was like he was never here. But I can never forget him. That story he told, the dream I had after, they are always with me. I sighed as I walked to my locker, grabbing my bag and books. Summer was only like 20 days away and I couldn't be more excited. I started walking toward the ferry. It was Friday of course. And I had no plans for the weekend. I got on the ferry and just stared off in to the water. _Today would be a good day for a swim_, I thought to myself. I needed time to clear my head, and just think. Because of the persistent persuasion from the guys, mostly Shelton, I caved in and told Kit what happened. He freaked of course, which was the reason I didn't want to tell him in the first place. He called the police and they went to search the cave. They were completely skeptical of the kidnapping, but once they saw the cage, even they knew I was telling the truth. I sighed as I walked home. There were still no leads on Blake, not even the slightest hint of where he could have gone. I made it home, changed in to my one piece (I had hidden it in the back of my closet when Whitney took my swimsuit shopping just in case, and thankfully I had. I now owned 3 bikinis, which I will never wear), put on a pair of shorts and started toward the beach. When I got there, it was empty. _Thank God_, I thought to myself. Peace and quiet. I jumped in the water then floated on my back_. I wonder what the guys are doing right now_. Hi had been grounded for not telling his parents about the kidnapping/rescue. Shelton was only grounded for staying out too late that one night, and Ben… Well Ben had actually gotten off with no punishment. He said he explained something's with his dad, and his dad let him go. And when I asked him how he had done that (I wanted to try it the next time with Kit) he said it was nothing. I thought about Ben. I couldn't figure out where we stood. I mean, besides the kiss, and the hug, we didn't really talk that much. Heck, we've barely talked since I told him my dream and about Blake's mom. I liked him, but there was no way I was going to be the one to admit it first. I sighed again, and kicked my legs a little, pushing me out farther. Sometimes I really hate being a girl.

I floated around for a while, letting my mind wander. When I decided that I had been out long enough, I swam back to the shore, dried off a little and put my shorts back on, then started walking. I checked my phone, surprised to find 3 missed calls and a text. The text was from Kit asking when I was going to be home. One of the voicemails was also from him, letting me know he had important research to do and would not be home for dinner, and that he was going to spend the night with Whitney and I was not to leave the house. The other was from Shelton, asking about the homework that was due next Friday, like I was even thinking about that right now. And the last was from an unknown number. I checked to see when they called, 5 minutes ago. I thought of who it could be then shrugged, I had no idea. I continued walking through the woods to my house, putting the phone to my ear to hear this mystery caller. At first, it was a muffled sound, then I heard a voice, and I stopped dead in my tracks. "Hello Tory. Had you thought that I had forgotten about you? Quite the opposite really, you haven't left my mind. After your escape, I was rushed to leave. I forgot to tell you something. I am always watching. And let me just say, that red one piece does not do you justice. Green would have been a better choice." My eyes widened as I looked around, frantic. He was here. He was watching me swim. He was HERE!

**SNUP**

I flared, panic running through me. I ran, and I ran fast. I was almost out of the trees when I saw him. He was standing right where the trees met the road. I skidded to a stop, out of breathe. I quickly grabbed my phone, holding it slightly behind me, so he couldn't see it. I hit Ben's name, then stuffed the phone in my pocket, partially out, but unnoticeable.

**Ben's POV**

I was on Sewee when I got a call. I looked down and saw that it was Tory. Why is she calling me? I answered. "Hello?... Hello?" I got no response. Odd. I listened closer. I could hear faint talking. "Well Tory. As cliché as this sounds, we meet again." _Oh Shit!_ That was Blake! Why the hell was he still around? And why was he with Tory? My mind spun. I got on my laptop while putting the phone on speaker so I could still hear. I connected my phone and put up the iFollow we created. I found Tory's location. It was near the beach, just inside the woods. _I need to get down there immediately_, I thought. I ran toward the beach, never turning the phone off. "Listen Tory, I realize what I did was rash, and that I probably should have thought it through more. But I'm being pressured. If you can believe it, someone wants you dead more than I do. My father. See, he hasn't gotten over shooting my mother, and will do basically anything for revenge." I ran faster.

**SNUP**

My flare kicked in. Good. I was able to run 10 times faster. "I'm not going to kill you Tory" said Blake, to which I heard a small sigh of relief, assuming it was Tory. "Oh, no. I'm going to leave that to my father. Who I might add, is behind you".

**Tory's POV**

"Who I might add, is behind you." I quickly turned around, which was a mistake. I should have just ran, I would have made it. But no, I turned and saw a man standing less than 4 feet away from me._ Why had I not smelled or heard him_? I thought. _Because I was focused too much on Blake_. The man was tall, and was an image of an older Blake. _Blake is not going to age well_. The man pulled stepped closer to me, and I stepped back. I could hear Blake walking towards me. Great, I'm going to be trapped between two psychos. Then the man pulled out a knife. Oh, it could only get better from here. And it did of course. Blake lunged at me and grabbed my arms. I struggled, and with my flare, put up a good fight. But the fact that I was out numbered weighed in. I managed to break away from Blake, only to be grabbed, quite violently, by his father. And the knife went to my throat. I gulped waiting for the end. He laughed. "Did you really think I was going to end it so quickly? Oh no my dear. You WILL suffer. Now son, do you think you'll be able to hold on to her for a few minutes? Or is that too much to ask?" Blake was about to respond but his father cut him off. "Here's some help" and with that he took the knife and swiftly cut the backs of my knees, two small, yet semi-deep cuts. I cringed and staggered a little. "Now Tory, I'm going to tell you exactly what I'm going to do. You see, one stab wound is painful, but it is over fast. I am going to give you a series of small cuts, at key points on the body. This techniques is one of the most painful and horrific methods of torture. The wounds are not deep enough to kill, but bring immense pain and suffering to the holder." He cut my shoulder. I tried to hold in a cry, but to no prevail. I tried to get away from Blake, but my knees hurt too much. _Please hurry Ben_.

At that moment a shape slammed into Blake's father, sending him hurtling through the air. Ben turned toward me. He saw Blake and literally growled. Blake stepped back and was about to pull something out of his pocket when Ben grabbed him and threw him. He hit a tree and fell to the ground. Blake's father had gotten up and was rushing toward Ben with the knife. Ben pushed his arm away, twisting the guy's wrist in the process, making him drop the knife. I heard a snap. The guy dropped in pain. Ben had broken his wrist. Ben glanced around, and then asked for my shoe laces. I looked at him, confused. "I need to tie him up" he explained. I nodded then gave him my shoes laces. Blake's dad was trying to get up, but Ben kicked him, hard and knocked him unconscious. He flipped the man, tying his hand together, in a tight knot. _There's no way he's going to be able to untie that… It's gonna need to be cut off_, I thought to myself. Blake in the meantime had started to crawl away. Ben stopped him. He stepped on Blake's back. "Please! Don't hurt me! I swear I'll tell the cops everything!" He was starting to cry. This was all just too much for him. Ben was looking down at him in disgust. He tossed me the phone and told me to call 911. I did while Ben tied Blake up. "The police are on their way" I said while sitting down. I was feeling a bit light headed. Ben finished with Blake and walked over to me. "Are you okay?" he asked. I just laughed. "Yeah, I'm peachy. I just love it when people try to kill me." Ben looked down at me with worried eyes. "You're bleeding. Let me help" he said. He scooted so he was sitting right next to me. "You know Tory, you should really learn self-defense. You get in to trouble so often, it would come in handy." I just nodded. I'm not sure of what happened after that. It was getting hard to keep my eyes open, and eventually I just gave in.

I awoke to smell of something rancid. I opened my eyes slightly, letting them adjust. Then I opened them all the way. I was lying in the hospital. I felt bandages around my knees and when I tried to move my arm, my shoulder stung. I looked and saw another bandage. I turned to scan the room, and was amazed that Ben was the only one in here. He was sitting next to me in a chair, head resting on his hands, which were clasped together over his face. It almost looked like he was praying. But he was sleeping. I tried to sit up but actually let out a squeak. My whole body hurt. I looked back over at Ben and saw that he was looking at me. "What happened?" I asked. "I remember you tying up Blake, but after that…" I trailed off. "You fainted. You had lost a lot of blood. That guy, Blake's father, cut you pretty deep. Luckily the ambulance came and they brought you here. Blake and his father were arrested for kidnapping, assault, and attempted murder. Blake's even being charged as an adult. We won't ever have to worry about them again." He finished off with a small smile. I smiled back.

It turns out I had been unconscious for about a day. The doctors said it was normal, and luckily they didn't need to take any of my blood. That would have been hard to explain. I was released that next day, Sunday. Kit came to get me (Ben had called once I was in the hospital and apparently Kit had come to visit, he had just left when I woke up). Sunday I was up and about, ready to do something. After doing absolutely nothing Saturday, I just wanted to move. This made me think though. Was Blake's father really correct when he said we had healing capabilities? It would explain why my cuts were almost completely healed, only after 2 day. I pushed the thought out of my mind and went to the bunker. I had hardly spent any time with Cooper, and I needed some puppy love. No one was at the Bunker, and I was happy with this. I sat down and Coop sat on my lap. I was inspecting my shoulder wound when I heard a voice. "The cut looks a lot better". I turned to see Ben leaning against the entrance of the Bunker. "Yeah, it's almost completely healed" I said. Ben moved to sit next to me. Coop got off my lap to lick Ben. I chuckled. "Ben… I never got to thank you before. For saving me. I would probably be dead right now if you hadn't shown up." I said, looking straight at him. "It was nothing. You had the idea to call me, and hide the phone. Which brings up a question I've had. Why did you call me? Why not Hi, Shelton, your dad, or even the police? Why me?" he asked. I sighed. _It was now or never,_ I thought to myself. "I called you because I knew that you would come. You have always been there for me, even when I don't deserve it. And… It's because I like you Ben. More than just a friend." I watched his mouth drop. _Crap, he doesn't feel the same way… _"Forget that I said that. I'm sorry for making this awkward. I understand if you don't feel the same way." I got up and faced away from him_. How could I be so stupid! We were finally at a point where we were really good friends. Why did I have to ruin it! _"Tory" Ben said. I didn't turn. "Tory" he said louder, and I could hear him getting up. "What?" I responded, still not looking at him. "Look at me" I just shook my head. I felt a hand go to my uninjured shoulder, turning me around. I looked into his eyes. "I like you too" he said softly. I looked at him surprised but before I could say anything, he pulled me close and kissed me. And it was unlike all the other kisses I have ever had. I wrapped my arm around his neck, deepening the kiss. His hand went to my waist, trying to pull me even closer, though it wasn't possible. My other hand went to his hair, fingers diving into it. This is what I wanted. And I could tell he wanted it as well. I could feel his lips moving against mine, so I moved them back. After a few minutes, we broke for air. "…Wow…" was all I could say. "Yeah…" he said. And then smiled, a smile that went to his eyes. All I could think was that this was going to be a great summer.

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><p><strong>And that's all folks! I felt kind of iffy on how to end this, but I hope it was good! I will be writing another onetwo shot soon. Tory will take Ben up on that Self Defense tip. Please review and tell me what you think! I'm not sure when I will have time to write that one/two shot, but it should be up before the end of August. Probably a lot sooner! Thanks to all that read and reviewed! You made this worth writing!**

**Stay Stellar!**

**~KimKo03~**


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